Trigger Words

Former special operations (1/75) sniper, bestselling author, firearm industry executive and attorney Ryan Cleckner discussing all things guns, law and politics. Ryan's engaging demeanor and straight talk on complex topics will have you instantly hooked on this great podcast!

It's the time of year where people start wanting firearms as gifts and, hopefully, people start thinking about giving firearms as gifts.

Contrary to what some believe, it is perfectly legal to purchase a firearm from a gun store/FFL as a gift for someone else.

But, there are a couple of important nuances to buying a firearm as a gift for someone else:

You must actually be the one buying the firearm as a true gift. This means it is your money and you are not buying it to be reimbursed with money, services, or an item in exchange.

You must not have any reason to believe that the recipient of the gift is a prohibited person and they are otherwise allowed to possess that firearm (age restrictions and state laws apply). To learn more about prohibited persons, check out episode #4.

The Form 4473 (the form you fill out to purchase a firearm from an FFL) asks if you are the actual purchaser. If the purchase is a bona fide gift, then you select "yes."

Once you've purchased the firearm, you can now gift it is you would any other firearm you already own.

If the person is a resident of your state, and your state doesn't have any laws about personal transfers, then you can just give the firearm to the recipient (you can even mail it in your own state).

If the person is a resident of another state, you MUST ship the item to an FFL in the recipient's state - the recipient then must go to the FFL and have the firearm transferred to them. If you know that this is your plan, you can just purchase the firearm from the FFL and have them ship it to the other FFL - there's no need to fill out the 4473 and transfer it to yourself if you don;t need to take possession of the firearm.

Continuing with the basics of firearms laws, we dive into the definition of Prohibited Persons - those who can't possess firearms nor ammunition.

Ryan goes through the definition, explains some of the nuances of certain parts (it can get tricky) and uses it as an example to show how multiple parts of federal firearms laws were broken (in addition to murder) by the Texas church shooter and it did not stop him - therefore, more laws won't work.

Ryan introduces an important concept - there's a law that make is illegal for Prohibited Persons to possess firearms and ammunition and there's a separate law that makes it illegal for the average gun owner/non-Prohibited Persons to allow a Prohibited Person to possess firearms or ammunition.

Yes, the Prohibited Person will get in trouble if caught with a firearm or ammunition, but you can get into serious trouble too by allowing them access!

We start with a review of the basic legal definitions from the last episode then we apply them to real world scenarios. First, a primer on the definition of silencers (yes, silencers and not suppressors) and then we explore how products like the SilencerCo Maxim50 and the Springfield Armory Saint AR-15 Pistol were created with good motivation (creative practical application of firearm compliance/legal knowledge) but bad judgment (focusing only on federal law and marketing language that doesn't jive with the legal intent).

OUTLINE OF THIS EPISODE:

Review of the basic firearm definitions

Title I vs Title II firearms

No such thing as "Class 3 Firearm"

18 U.S. Code § 921(a)(24) The term “Firearm Silencer” or “Firearm Muffler” means any device for silencing, muffling, or diminishing the report of a portable firearm, including any combination of parts, designed or redesigned, and intended for the use in assembling or fabricating a firearm silencer or firearm muffler, any part intended only for use in such assembly or fabrication.

18 U.S. Code § 921(a)(3) The term “firearm” means (A) any weapon (including a starter gun) which will or is designed to or may readily be converted to expel a projectile by the action of an explosive; (B) the frame or receiver of any such weapon; (C) any firearm muffler or firearm silencer; or (D) any destructive device. Such term does not include an antique firearm.

80% receiver is not a REAL term/measurement

18 U.S. Code § 921(a)(16) The term “antique firearm” means—(A) any firearm (including any firearm with a matchlock, flintlock, percussion cap, or similar type of ignition system) manufactured in or before 1898; or(B) any replica of any firearm described in subparagraph (A) if such replica—(i) is not designed or redesigned for using rimfire or conventional centerfire fixed ammunition, or(ii) uses rimfire or conventional centerfire fixed ammunition which is no longer manufactured in the United States and which is not readily available in the ordinary channels of commercial trade; or(C) any muzzle loading rifle, muzzle loading shotgun, or muzzle loading pistol, which is designed to use black powder, or a black powder substitute, and which cannot use fixed ammunition. For purposes of this subparagraph, the term “antique firearm” shall not include any weapon which incorporates a firearm frame or receiver, any firearm which is converted into a muzzle loading weapon, or any muzzle loading weapon which can be readily converted to fire fixed ammunition by replacing the barrel, bolt, breechblock, or any combination thereof.

Rifle is a firearm with a rifled barrel designed and intended to be fired from the shoulder

Shotgun is a firearm with a smooth barrel designed and intended to be fired from the shoulder

Former special operations (1/75) sniper, bestselling author, firearm industry executive and attorney Ryan Cleckner discussing all things guns, law and politics. Ryan's engaging demeanor and straight talk on complex topics will have you instantly hooked on this great podcast!

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